


A Choice

by talienfey



Category: Zero Escape (Video Games), Zero Escape: Virtue's Last Reward - Fandom
Genre: Gen, Spoilers
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-03-29
Updated: 2014-03-29
Packaged: 2018-01-17 10:02:35
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,411
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1383418
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/talienfey/pseuds/talienfey
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Dio, Luna and Quark explore the infirmary, and get to know a little bit about each other.  Spoilers for Dio's ending (at least) so read at your own risk. :)</p>
            </blockquote>





	A Choice

“ _MOVE_ , people!”  
  
Sigma’s voice was still echoing through the warehouse as the groups rushed through the chromatic doors. Dio was first through the yellow portal, trailed by Quark and Luna. It slid down decisively behind them, narrowly missing the hem of Luna’s skirt. They stood still for a moment, breathing heavily, as the room verified their bracelets with a loud humming noise.  
  
Dio broke the ensuing silence. “Shit, this is really fucked up, you know? Goddamn rodent messing around with us, I’m gonna pound him when—”  
  
“Ah—Quark, please wait!” Luna interrupted, hurrying past him. The young boy was already several steps ahead, skipping along cheerfully as though he hadn't a care in the world. “It might not be safe!”  
  
Dio made a disgruntled expression. First he was disrespected by that stupid rabbit, and now blatantly ignored by that woman and kid. This was already proving to be a pain in the ass. He marched after the pair, trying to hide his annoyance. It would have been so much simpler if he’d been allowed to just plant the bombs and leave. He wasn’t really sure why Brother’s orders had been so explicit about participating in this stupid game until he either won, or it was no longer possible to play—and only  _then_  set off the bombs—but he wasn’t in any position to question. _No, decidedly not_. He straightened the brim of his hat as he caught up at the end of the hallway, where a door blocked their way.  
  
“What’s an ‘infirmary?” Quark was asking Luna, scratching his head underneath the edge of his extremely odd hat and frowning up at the word glowing on the door.   
  
“It’s an area people go to for basic medical treatment if they get sick or hurt,” she explained, leaning down just slightly enough to speak to his face without looking condescending. “It’s usually just one dedicated room in a bigger building, so it’s not like a hospital or a doctor’s office.” Quark stroked his chin and nodded thoughtfully in an uncharacteristically mature pose.  
  
“Ah, that makes sense!” he said, then smiled again and casually stepped forward, triggering the door's opening mechanism. He didn't even notice Luna’s horrified look as she reached for him.  
  
“ _Wai_ —” she began, then stopped as the door opened without event. She let out a sigh of relief, pressing her hand against her chest. Quark turned around.  
  
“Hurry up, are you guys coming or what?” He put his hands on his hips. “Man, Grandpa moves a lot faster than either of you, and he’s probably at _least_ ten years older than you, Mr. Dio.”   
  
Dio twitched. “Hey, kid, I’ll have you know I’m nowhere NEAR that—”  
  
Quark was not listening. He had already turned around and was beginning to walk through the room, gazing at everything with wide eyed curiosity. “Oh, cool!” he said, rounding a wall of curtains and disappearing from view.  
  
“Please be careful!” Luna called out after him. She turned to Dio with a sheepish smile. “I’m sorry, I’m… not very good with children.” She bit her lip and looked a bit distraught for a moment.  
  
“Could’ve fooled me,” Dio said, shrugging. _What's the big deal? He doesn't listen to ANYONE as far as I can tell._   He pointed to the door.  “After you.”  
  
Luna smiled at him again, briefly, and walked through the doorway.  
  
The room was exactly what the door had said, an infirmary. There was a wall of curtains separating a sink and three beds from the rest of the room, a desk with a large monitor, a bed that seemed to be attached to some kind of scanner, and a cabinet. A wheeled cart sat in front of it, and just beyond it was a door. Dio headed directly to it.  
  
“Heh. It’s locked,” he said, testing it. Quark looked up from the cabinet, where he was tiptoeing to see into the shelves.

“Well duh, Mr. Dio,” he said, rolling his eyes. “Can’t you see the big lock beside it?” He giggled slightly as he reached for one of the bottles resting on the shelves.  
  
Dio frowned, crossing his arms. “Listen here, smarta—”  
  
“Oh, Quark, please be careful!” Luna cried, lunging forward and catching the boy as he teetered backwards slightly. He fell into her arms and gave a wry smile.  
  
“Sorry, Miss Luna. But look what I found!” Quark held up the bottle triumphantly. “I think that it has something to do with the puzzles." The boy straightened, shaking the bottle and peering into it. “It’s some kind of white powder.”  
  
“What makes you think it’s special?” Dio said petulantly, tapping his foot. He gestured at the shelves. “It looks pretty much like every other bottle on there, just a different shape.”  
  
“No, I think he’s right,” Luna said, tapping a finger to her chin. “See, it’s a slightly different color than the rest.” She unscrewed the lid and waved her hand over it, guiding the smell to her nose. “It smells like… soap!”

“What the heck’s soap doing in a place like that?” Dio demanded, irritated.  
  
“That’s why I said it stuck out! It’s a clue to getting out of this room.” Quark beamed, completely oblivious to Dio’s annoyance. He looked around the taller man, his eyes lighting up with curiosity. “Hey, what’s this?”  
  
Quark seemed to forget all about the jar and shelves as he walked over to a box on the wall that was marked with colorful icons. “It looks it could be some kind of a puzzle…”  
  
Dio opened his mouth but snapped it shut as Luna began to speak. “Quark, I’m going to leave that puzzle to you, okay? Dio, would you mind examining over by the beds for clues? I’ll look at the ADAM—that’s the scanner over there.” She looked nervous again suddenly. “That is, if that’s okay with everyone?”  
  
He shrugged. “Sure,” he muttered. He wasn’t sure if it had been her intention, but he was now on the opposite side of the room as Quark, and that didn’t bother him. Even though he’d woken up in the same elevator and solved its puzzle with the boy, he couldn’t help but feel annoyed every time the child laughed at him.  _Wouldn’t be laughing if he knew who I was, I bet_.  
  
Dio poked at the beds. They didn’t seem to be very comfortable, although he supposed it wasn’t really the appropriate time to test them out. The sheets covering them also seemed to be old and dingy.

Something was lying on the last one, and he picked it up. It was some sort of metal shape, but he couldn’t quite figure out what it was. He shrugged to himself and shoved it in his pocket. If it was lying out there in this puzzle hell, there was probably a purpose to it.  
  
There was a large patch sewn on the bottom of the middle bed. It clearly didn’t belong there. “Hey, I think I found something weird,” he called over to his companions. He pulled at it, but it seemed to be stitched on tightly. “You got something sharp?” he added.  
  
Quark bounced around the corner. “You mean like this?” He brandished a scalpel at Dio, smiling innocently.  
  
Dio jumped back, holding up his hands defensively. “Whoa! Kid, what the hell!”  
  
Luna gasped as she rounded the corner, her hands flying up in alarm. “QUARK! Where did you get that?”  
  
Quark lowered his arm, looking ashamed. “It was on that cart. I couldn’t get the puzzle open, so I started looking there again. It’s what he needs, isn’t it?”  
  
“Um, yes, but can you please give that to me—carefully? It’s very sharp, and that’s dangerous!” Luna said with a strained smile. Quark shrugged, his embarrassment already forgotten.  
  
“Sure! Do you want the gun too?”   
  
“ _What gun_?” Luna cried, her hands flying to her face in horror. Quark beamed, pulling out a gun with a pointed tip. Dio instinctively jerked back a bit more in alarm. _Where the hell is he finding this shit?_  
  
“Pretty cool, huh? I don’t think it fires anything, though,” Quark said as he examined it. He wrinkled his nose in disappointment. His face lit back up as he turned it over to the other side. “Oh, it says it’s an injection gun. So do you think there’s medicine in it?”  
  
“Yes, but I don’t think we’ll be needing that,” Luna replied nervously. “Would you please put that back where you found it, Quark?”  
  
“Okay!” Quark carefully handed the scalpel to Luna, and bounded back around the curtains. She breathed a visible sigh of relief as Dio let out an internal one, and turned to the bed.   
  
“Ah, I see what you mean,” she said. “I think that’s what I’ve been looking for! There’s a spot about this size missing on the ADAM’s covering.” She knelt down beside the bed and began carefully picking at the stitches with the scalpel, her eyes intent on the task.  
  
Dio sat down on another bed, watching her openly. He hadn't really been around any women for a long time, but Luna was unlike any he could recall. She smiled more, and seemed very eager to please. Maybe she wasn't conventionally pretty, especially in her old fashioned garb and mature hairstyle that seemed at odds with her youthful, freckled face, but he didn't exactly _mind_ looking at her. He might even have enjoyed it—if he could forget how dangerous it was to be around outsiders.  After... _that_ event had happened, he could not afford to drop his guard.  Never again.  
  
Luna seemed nervous, as if she was afraid that any of her comments would be received poorly. Dio couldn't think of anything he'd done to put her on edge, so it had to be the kid. She seemed to think she was doing a horrible job keeping the boy safe and under control, but Dio couldn’t find any problems in how she handled him.  
  
He'd have gagged Quark with that stupid hat a long time ago if it was up to him.  
  
He crossed his arms, settling back on the bed's thin cushion. He didn't want to be the source of her unease—he needed everyone to trust him if he was going to win this game. He attempted to strike up a conversation. “So, you got your own kids?”  
  
She looked up, a startled expression in her blue eyes. “Huh? Oh, um, no. No, I don’t.” She reached up to push a strand of her auburn hair back into place, conveniently hiding her face for a moment.  
  
Dio snorted to himself. _And_  I’m _the_  s _uspicious one?_    
  
She looked up, her expression back to being open and friendly. “Do you have any children, Dio?”  
  
“Me?” That was quite unexpected, even if it was a natural flow in the conversation.  He half frowned in surprise, then looked off to the side.  
  
“Dunno,” he answered, after a moment. “I might have one.”  
  
Luna looked at him, pausing in her work. There was no judgment or disgust on her face—rather, she had a soft, sympathetic expression—almost sad. She smiled briefly when he returned her gaze and turned back to her work.  
  
 _What a strange woman._  
  
After a few more cuts with the scalpel, Luna gave a sharp tug. The patch came off, a perfectly shaped square, covered in grime. She smiled, pleased. “There we go.”  
  
“Looks pretty gross,” Dio said, wrinkling his nose. “Is that some kind of oil on it?”  
  
“Hmm, I believe you’re right,” Luna replied, rubbing the black stain. “It’s very greasy. I think we’ll need to clean it with something—ah! The soap!”  
  
Dio pushed himself up and walked over to the sink. He turned the spigot. “We’ve got water too. Doesn’t look like the drain plugs up, though.”  
  
“Water? That’s good,” Luna said. She genuinely meant it, he realized, bemused. “Hmm… Now we just need something to wash this in.” She gazed around the room, her eyes settling on the top of the cart. “Ah! Quark? Would you mind bringing that basin on the cart over here, please?”  
  
“Sure!” Dio gave an internal short scowl again. Quark was eager to do anything Luna asked, but the boy seemed to ignore ninety percent of what he said. He walked over to the desk as she and Quark began to wash the material.   
  
Dio picked up the notebook laying on top of the desk and flipped through it. It was blank.  _Well, that was pointless,_ he thought, irritated. If he was going to have to spend the next several hours digging through a bunch of objects that turned out to be meaningless, maybe he’d just set the bombs and blow up the entire place preemptively and to _hell_ with Brother and his plan. He winced at the blasphemous thought—his second or third today. Maybe he shouldn't have been trusted out here, alone... No, it was just his bad habit of running his mouth. He knew better. Especially after _that_. Dio shut the notebook with a snap.  
  
There was something else sitting on the desk. It was the same kind of metal as the thing he’d found on the cot. He picked it up, taking the other part out of his pocket. They snapped together easily, forming a key. Dio half smiled and shoved it back in his pocket.   
  
Next, he tested the drawers, but none of them opened.  _More pointless bullshit_. Dio looked up at the monitor, seeing a very blurred reflection peering back. There weren't really any reflective surfaces in this place so far—at least he knew, as a Myrmidon, he always looked perfect. He grinned.  Further examination of the monitor showed him a small slot in the side—perhaps for a memory stick of some kind? Quark's giggle interrupted his line of thought.  
  
“It’s clean!” Quark cheered. He pulled the material out of the basin and shook it out, splashing water around. A good deal of it spattered onto Dio. He twitched as he brushed it off of his face, but as usual, Quark didn’t seem to notice. The boy was holding up the cloth and examining it. “There’s some numbers and pictures on it. Should I put it on the scanner, Miss Luna?”  
  
“Please do,” Luna said, standing up from where she’d set the basin on the floor. Somehow, the kid had managed to avoid getting a drop of soapy water on her. She looked up at him as she straightened her skirts. “Have you found anything, Dio?”  
  
“Nope,” he lied easily, shrugging. “The desk only had a blank notebook. Kinda stupid, if you ask me. I think there's a memory card slot, though--”  
  
“What’s this thing do, anyways?” Quark interrupted. Dio turned. The blond child was holding the scanner gun from the top of the machine, and was looking directly into it with a puzzled frown. Luna gasped.  
  
“Oh, Quark, please don’t do that!” she cried just as Quark pressed the button on the handle. He blinked in surprise as a bright light came out of it, directly into his eyes. Dio laughed.  
  
“What, were you expecting something else when you looked into a pointed object and pulled the trigger?” he asked sarcastically. Quark made a face at him as he squinted his eyes shut, blinking again. Luna knelt down beside him to peer into his eyes. She let out a sigh of relief.  
  
“You'll be fine, Quark. Just wait a few minutes and they'll stop feeling bad, okay?” she said, pushing a strand of hair away from his face. Quark wrinkled his nose.  
  
“That hurt,” he said, rubbing his face with the back of his hands. They were watering a little, but Dio had no sympathy.  
  
“Well, yeah, I’d imagine it would,” he said, smirking.  _Serves you right, you brat_. “Maybe you should be a bit more careful about where you point things.” Quark made a noncommittal noise, ignoring or unaware of the mean spirit of Dio's comments, and continued to rub his eyes.  
  
“Dio, that’s not kind,” Luna chided, looking at him reproachfully as she stood back up. “He’s just a child, please be patient,” she added, quieter so that the boy couldn’t hear. “I know it can be a little difficult, but he truly doesn't mean any harm.”  
  
Dio was slightly taken aback.  _Did she just_ scold _me? ME? Left, the leader of the Myrmidons, and she's_ _scolding_ _me?_ And most annoyingly, why did she make him feel slightly ashamed? _  
  
_“Uh, sorry,” he muttered, wrinkling his nose.  She gave him one of her gentle smiles in response as she turned back to the ADAM. _Forgiven already, huh?_  
  
Luna straightened the patch Quark had laid on the bed of the machine. “May I have that, please?” she asked, gesturing to the boy. He handed her the scanner and walked back across the room, still opening and shutting his eyes in between rubbing them.  
  
Luna began to scan the mattress, and letters began to appear on the screen.  
  
“So how’d you know how to work this thing, anyways?” Dio asked, walking over and leaning against the wall beside the machine lazily. Luna bit her lip slightly, as though she were concentrating.  
  
“I have a medical license,” she answered without looking away from the screen. “The ADAM stands for Automatic Diagnosis and Analysis Machine. It uses nuclear magnetic resonance imaging to scan patients, and provide a diagnosis based on the results.” She gave a slight frown. “I’m not really sure how to scan this sheet, however. Um, do you have any ideas?”  
  
Dio looked at the screen. There were three icons and two numbers. When Luna ran the scanner over them, a letter appeared, but none of them made any particular sense. He shrugged. “I think those are the same icons as the puzzle on the wall over there. We probably need to solve that first.”  
  
Luna nodded. “That makes sense. Thank you.” She smiled again.  
  
“Uh, sure. No problem.”  _What the hell are you thanking me for?_  He tugged on the brim of his hat to hide his expression. She made him feel… awkward.  
  
“I found a key!” Quark said, poking his head up above the cart. “And some kind of clipboard and a safe! And… I dunno what this is.” He held up a little blue piece of flat plastic.  
  
“Hmm,” Luna said. “Let me see what you have.” He handed her the clipboard. “It seems to be instructions for washing.” She smiled. “We figured that out on our own! And this is a memory card, Quark. Dio, isn’t there a slot in the monitor over there?”  
  
“Yup,” he said, pointing at it with his thumb.  
  
“Would you please?” she asked, holding out the card.   
  
“Uh, sure,” Dio said, reaching out in response without thinking.  
  
The very tip of her fingers brushed against his hand softly as she set it in his palm, and he jerked back, dropping the card. Luna looked surprised at the reaction, taking a slight step back, her eyes widening. Dio looked away quickly, bending down to pick up the card.  
  
“Sorry,” he muttered. His heart was pounding.  _It was barely anything,_  he told himself.  _I’m still pure. I'm not failing_.   
  
“I think the key goes into the puzzle.” Quark wasn't paying attention to the tiny drama behind him. He had walked over to the box of icons on the wall and was poking at the frame’s sides. It clicked. “Awesome!” He tugged at the case enclosing it. “Still won’t open though. I think there’s another lock.”  
  
“Hmm, I just found another key on the floor,” Dio lied, pulling the other one out of his pocket furtively. “Try that.” He tossed it to Quark.  
  
“It fits!” Quark said, delighted. “And this part comes out.” He frowned. “I’m not sure what I’m supposed to do next, though—wait, it slides around! This is cool.” The boy focused on the puzzle.  
  
 _He acts like this is just a game,_ Dio thought as he turned back to the monitor. He stuck the memory card in the screen, and it lit up. Words appeared.  
  
 _A: White powder in medicine bottle_ _  
_ _B: Water_  
  
“Are you fucking kidding me?” he scoffed. “We really needed instructions for that?” Dio sat down in the chair and crossed his arms, huffing. “Zero must think we’re complete idiots.”   
  
Neither Luna or Quark responded.  He sat back and watched the pair fiddle with the puzzle. Luna seemed to have forgotten all about the awkwardness just a moment before, and was focused on pointing out things in the case. After a few minutes, Quark clapped his hands and jumped in the air. “I got it!”  
  
“Great job, Quark! And here we are!” Luna said. She held up a piece of paper displaying numbers in colored circles. “I think I know how to solve the ADAM’s puzzle, now!”   
  
She walked back over to the ADAM and began to scan. Dio and Quark followed. The screen turned green, and a grid appeared. “Looks like a safe password, like the one in the elevator,” Dio observed.   
  
“I’ll enter it!” Quark volunteered, rushing over to the safe. He tapped the pattern in, and it popped open. “Okay, here we go… here’s an Ambidex card for me, and one for Miss Luna.” He reached further in, sticking his tongue out in concentration as he felt around. “What else...”  
  
“Um, excuse me, but don’t _I_ get one?” Dio asked, glaring down at the boy. Quark gave him a scathing look.

“We’re partners, remember? We only need one to get in!” He turned back to the safe, ignoring Dio’s twitching. “Hmm, and it looks like… a key!” He held it up triumphantly, using his other hand to adjust his hat. “We can leave now!”  
  
“Finally,” Dio muttered. Luna took the key from Quark and inserted it into the hole beside the door.  
  
“Is everyone ready?” she asked. The boy and the man nodded, and she replied with her own nod. “Here goes!”  
  
She opened the door. It led into another plain metal hallway. Quark began skipping off again, ignoring Luna’s call to wait.  
  
Dio looked around the room one more time. There was something nagging at him, but he couldn’t quite figure out what. The man frowned. He wasn't a fan of working in such close quarters with other people. It was... _dangerous_.  
  
But nothing had happened, he reminded himself. He'd had a few thoughts that weren't appropriate, but nothing had _happened_. A millisecond of contact didn't mean anything. Dio shook his thoughts free and stepped into the hallway.  
  
“Ah—Dio,” Luna said. He jerked as she gently laid a hand on his arm in a brief touch. He thought she’d rushed after Quark, but apparently he was wrong.

“What?” he asked, sounding a bit harsher than he’d intended. She had an unreadable expression for a moment, then looked up at him with her sweet, gentle smile.  
  
“Thank you for all your help. I really appreciate it,” Luna said simply. Confusion crossed Dio's face briefly as he looked down at her. There wasn't any sarcasm or malice in her face, just kindness—and a hint of something else, like... sadness? He wasn't good at reading human expressions. They were so much more complex than a Myrmidon's.  
  
Luna abruptly turned away, a worried expression on her face. “Oh, I hope Quark doesn’t get into trouble!” She began to hurry down the hallway, calling after the child.  
  
“Don’t mention it,” he muttered, belated, to her back. His hand unconsciously brushed against where she’d touched his sleeve for such a short moment as he crossed his arms, and he paused there, thoughtfully.  
  
 _A strange, strange woman_.  
  
He shook his head and headed after them.  
  
——————————

The door to the Ambidex Room slid shut as Dio and Quark walked over to the AB machine. The young boy smiled up at the older man, shifting his odd hat over his soft curls.   
  
“Since you didn’t really do anything in the infirmary, I’ll let you press the button here,” he said. “It's not gonna be hard!”  
  
Dio tried to hide a half frown. The kid was making fun of him again. He stepped past Quark, trying to assert some authority.  
  
“It’s not a button, kid, but thanks anyways.” He smacked the START area of the screen a bit harder than necessary. A noise trumpeted through the room.  
  
The two words stared up at him from the green monitor.  
  
 _A: Ally_ _  
_ _B: Betray_  
  
Time seemed to slow down as his eyes narrowed. He could easily gain three points here—even though that would mean giving the brat three points, too. There’s no way Luna would betray them. He was more sure of that than almost anything else in this game.  
  
But…  
  
Quark frowned, sensing his hesitation. “Mr. Dio? What are you waiting for? You’re not actually thinking about betraying Miss Luna, are you?”  
  
Dio opened his eyes fully and blinked. He reached down to the screen—and his hand smacked over Quark’s. The boy was glaring up at him, his hand firmly on the  _Ally_  selection. The look in his eyes took Dio aback. There was no hint of childhood innocence in them, only a steely determination. It was a strange expression on such a young boy.  
  
“I was just about to push it,” he said, pulling his hand off the boy’s hastily and trying not to shudder at the contact. Quark smiled, the previous moment gone.  
  
“That’s great! You had me nervous for a minute.” The boy looked over at the opening doors excitedly. “C’mon, let’s go see the results! I bet you and me and Miss Luna are in the lead.” He hurried out, skipping a little and grinning.  
  
Dio watched him leave. He felt somewhat numb. He’d done something that didn’t make sense, that wouldn’t benefit him the most. Something almost directly against his mission.  
  
If Quark hadn’t beaten him to it, he would’ve pressed Ally anyways—and that thought bothered him. Brother wouldn’t approve. Was he showing weakness?  
  
 _No_ , he told himself. I’m just playing along, getting them to trust me. I’ll betray later.  
  
He probably couldn’t justify his choice, especially considering the situation he was in… but somehow, he knew it was the one he’d wanted to make. He straightened his hat, walking out of the room, pushing one last selfish thought from his mind as he refocused on his holy mission.  
  
Maybe, Luna would smile at him again.

 

**Author's Note:**

> Thanks as always to Sey for the initial beta--as always any mistakes are pure me! I wrote the original at 4 am and I went over it again after the beta comments after a long day, so it's probably not my best work, lol. It's just a one shot! :)
> 
> I wasn't REALLY intending this to come off as a shipping fic or anything :sweats nervously: But if that makes you happy by all means! I wanted to explore why Dio chose not to betray Luna, and I had heard of (but not read) a tweet from the author suggesting it was because Luna was "a pretty lady." I think there'd have to be a bit more than that, plus Quark was definitely a factor in the AB Room. I think that we didn't get nearly enough characterization for either, so I'm probably filling in a lot with headcanons--hopefully I don't seem TOO out there. I also feel like Luna would be nervous around children after Kyle's rejection. 
> 
> I hope you enjoyed this, and if you leave kudos you will make my day. leave a comment and I will literally roll around on the floor with glee. Unless it's like "You suck" because that would make me sad. Don't do that.
> 
> Also Quark's hat is stupid and no one can convince me otherwise. Even if he does keep delicious food in there.


End file.
